We hope you enjoyed the Labor Day weekend and have transitioned back to the second week of school smoothly.
Hopefully you noticed that your child's backpack was more packed than usual
on Friday. Fridays will be our regular day for grade-level and school-wide communication (fliers, letters, curriculum materials, student work, etc.). If you did not already see the Green Folder
on Friday, you will be seeing it soon! In this folder, we will put all materials that we really want you to see; it will come home each
Friday and we hope you will take the time to sit with your child and review notices that come home and return the folder each
Monday. The green folders will continue to be sent to/from home each day in case there are other days when you need to send important information that you want your child's teachers to see: absence notes, field trip permission slips, checks, etc.
In this past
Friday's stack, I'd like to call your attention to the Curriculum Guides that were sent home for each subject. (Some teachers filed these directly into your child's binder.) Our teachers spent many hours this summer working on the curriculum plans, calendars, and policies that are described. You will receive updated guides each quarter or trimester (depending on the class). There are a few changes to our curriculum this year:
- We hope that you will notice that in all subjects except Quest, the topics are presented as lists, instead of by week. This was done to reflect our more personalized approach this year, knowing that students will move through the content at different paces and in different ways.
- Homework policies have changed; each department will provide optional practice and activities related to their subjects, but CLS has decided that, generally, students will NOT have homework this year. Exceptions to this include work that was not completed during class and work to support long-term projects.
- Finally, and there will be many more details coming on Curriculum Night, we have decided to abandon Google Sites and Mastery Connect, in favor of a more user-friendly site called Seesaw. We think you will love that you will now get to see first-hand what your child is doing and more importantly, what they think about what they're doing and learning!
There is much more to share so please mark your calendars for
Curriculum Night on
Wednesday, September 20, from
6-8 pm. You will have the chance to spend a "day in the life at CLS" and learn more about what your child is learning in each class, participate in a "training" on our new platform - Seesaw, and meet other parents.
Enjoy this short week!
Sincerely,
Dr. Mary Moss Brown
Head of School
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WELLNESS UPDATE FROM MRS. WHELAN
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We are off to an amazing start this year, and I am excited to share some additional information on our advisory and character lab programs.
As I mentioned in the August 15 enewsletter, we are using
the MindUP curriculum again in advisory; and, we are bringing in an additional program called the Character Lab. Going forward, I will have a regular column in this enewsletter to provide monthly updates about what we are doing as a department and committee, as well as updates about Character Lab and lots more. You can also find all of our materials on our website.
This week, I would like to provide a little background on the Character Lab. Angela Duckworth, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, created the Character Lab, which advances the science and practice of character development (
www.characterlab.org
). Ms. Duckworth wanted to bring educators and scientists together to create measures and tools for schools to implement and assess character development in students. The Character Lab, headquartered at the University of Pennsylvania, supports educators in helping their students learn and grow to gain essential 21
st
century character skills that lead to long-term success. The team at the Character Lab includes works together toward a goal of encouraging effective character development in schools. The Character Lab continues to support research on character development with the creation of practical tools to intentionally cultivate character traits.
At the beginning of August, ELA Teacher Emily Fields and I had the pleasure of going to UPENN and working directly with Ms. Duckworth on Character Lab content, in addition to our vision for implementation at Charlotte Lab. She was impressed with our partnership with the MindUP program and thought that her character work would be an ideal program for a school with our mission, advisory program, and structure. Mrs. Fields and I left feeling beyond confident about this program and our vision; yet, a sense of eagerness to begin to weave this language into our everyday conversation with our students.
Please take a look at the Character Handbook that we created, in addition to the Mindfulness Program that was created last year. Don't feel the need to read every page; although, our goal is that by sharing these documents with you, you will have an additional tool to use to "connect" with your children. We hope that this language around "character traits" becomes an organic process that leads to more open conversations around the dinner table and on your rides to and from school.
We look forward to working with your students in this capacity and as usual, please feel free to contact me, or my coworker Andrea Miller, Behavior/Counseling Assistant, if you have any additional questions or concerns regarding your children this year.
Take care and see you soon,
Director of Wellness
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| AFTER SCHOOL STARTED TODAY |
We are excited about the great response to our after school programs. Even though some of the programs started today, there is still time to join after school, and we have added 3 new after school programs: Yoga (grades k-3) on Mondays; Yoga (grades 3-5) on Tuesdays; and art through Community School of the Arts on Thursdays. You can sign up here.
A few reminders about after school dismissal and pick up:
- If you are picking up your child anytime before 5:30 pm, you may park temporarily in the 319 lot and enter the school through the student entrance.
- At 5:30 pm, ALL students will be escorted to the playground to wait for parent/guardian pick up via carpool line, following the guidelines for regular, school-day carpool. Parents/guardians should enter and exit the parking lot from Brevard Street and display their Orange Transportation Cards.
- The carpool line closes at 5:45 pm, and students will be transitioned back into the school at that time
- If the carpool line has closed by the time you arrive, you should park and come to the front office.
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Your child's student emergency cards was sent home recently. Please be sure to review ALL of the information on the card and make necessary additions and/or changes before sending it back to school. Verify all phone numbers, email addresses, and add adults approved to pick up your child. These cards must be returned to the school no later than WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7.
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A big thank you to all of the families who ordered their school supplies from EduKit this year. We heard from many of you that you appreciate the chance for this one-stop shopping option, and we appreciate that a percentage of everything purchased is donated to the school. In case you heard from your child that they do not have their calculator or headphones, don't worry! We are still labeling and distributing them. (And they aren't needed in their classrooms, yet.) We also want to give a huge shout-out to parent volunteer Jaime Rentch, who managed this process every step of the way, from lists, to inventory, to delivery in classrooms. We couldn't have done it without you, Jaime!
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New families: Please note that on days that your child is sick or absent, we ask that you email his/her homeroom teacher and our Front Office Manager Stefanny Wilches before 8:30 am. A note from parents (and a doctor's note, if applicable) is necessary for and should be sent immediately and no longer than 3 days after the absence. Don't forget that our funding depends on our attendance the first 20 days of school, so please make every effort to ensure your child is at school.
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Membership
It was great to see so many of you at Meet Your Teacher Night. Thanks to those that have already joined the PTSO and signed up to volunteer. There is still time to join, and when you do,
please consider sponsoring a teacher or another Lab School family to help ensure that everyone has an opportunity to be involved in the PTSO. Access the Membership Form here if you'd like to join or learn more.
In the coming weeks, you'll see more in the enews about available volunteer opportunities.
Fall PTSO Meeting
Boxtops are Back!
Earn Money for Lab
Please don't forget to link your Harris Teeter VIC card to Charlotte Lab School. Each year, individuals must relink their VIC cards in order to have shopping proceeds benefit the school. Our number is 3190. If you don't have time, feel free to
email Zoe Balsamo your card number or phone number you use at check out, and she will be happy to do it for you.
For Publix shoppers, we have cards for you to use.
Email Zoe Balsamo and include your child's name and homeroom teacher, and we will make sure to send one home.
Book Fair is Coming! Sign Up to Volunteer!
We are hosting a Scholastic Book Fair September 26 through September 30, and we need your help to make it a success. Volunteers will work the cash register, help children select books, and straighten the books up after the kids leave.
Sign up here.
Sweet Dads!
Save the date: September 30! Donuts with Dads will take place from 7:45 am-8:15 am at the school.
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| Wed, Sep 14, 2016 |
BOG - Third Grade |
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| Thu, Sep 15, 2016 |
BOG Make Up - Third Grade |
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| Tue, Sep 20, 2016 |
Curriculum Night |
6:00 PM |
| Fri, Sep 23, 2016 |
Teacher Workday- NO CLASSES |
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| Mon, Sep 26, 2016 |
Book Fair Week |
8:00 AM |
| Tue, Sep 27, 2016 |
PTSO General Meeting |
6:30 PM |
| Fri, Sep 30, 2016 |
Donuts with Dad |
7:45 AM |
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Check out
our custom online shop today for a great selection of colorful polos and navy outerwear. T
he online store closes on
September 9 at midnight
. Late orders cannot be accepted, however we will have another online ordering opportunity in January. Any questions,
email Mandy French
. Remember, our uniform guidelines state that outerwear worn in the building must be NAVY. Polos can be any solid color.
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The deadline for ordering lunch is the Monday prior to the week you want lunch. And, you can now order lunch on specific days of the week. Simply buy a bundle of 5,10, or 20 lunches, and list the dates that you want lunch in the comments field when you order. For example, if you only want lunch on Mondays and Fridays, purchase 10 lunches and lists the dates.
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Children's Theatre has created mini camps exclusively for Charlotte Lab students on our teacher work days that do not coincide with CMS. The mini camps will be offered 9:00 am-4:00 pm at ImaginOn, with pick up and drop off at the Mezzanine Level check-in desk. Here is a private link to register for Charlotte Lab families.
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Don't forget to like
Charlotte Lab School on Facebook. There is also a Charlotte Lab School Parents Page. This page is managed by parents and not visible on Facebook for security reasons, so if you want to join the group, please email the page administrator
Nicole Bowen, and she will invite you to join.
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Transportation Changes must be made by 2:00 pm. And, if you are picking your child up early, you must arrive in the front office by 3:30 pm. No exceptions, please. If you arrive after 3:30 pm, you will be redirected to the student entrance to pick up your child with regular dismissal.
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